>> Rays of morning sunlight lurks under the branches of tree.

Wide meadow, full of greenery scenery captures someone’s eyes. The sky is dyed in azure and faint violet; clouds floats like a cotton as it flows around.

A fresh morning breeze coolly touches someone’s hair. Its blond hair lock dances through the gust, waving innocently.

“Where am I?”

Voice of a girl with wonder speaks in the serene. A young maiden stands in the vast field, seeking no one around to look after her.

“Where is this place?”

The girl asked again. Looking at her dress, the Tudor dress that she has been wearing; her hands and fingers that are slender and smooth as pearl; her pair of horns plucked out beside her head, and the ornament hanging on her forehead.

That then she realized she’s the princess herself: Astarte.

“Abigor? Mom? Where are you?” calling out, she look around and seeks the people somewhere. Yet, no one heeded her response. “Mom, Abigor... where are you?”

Once more, she called out. In the wide meadow she walks while wandering her sight, wishing to capture someone she knows.

Astarte keeps looking around, and from the distance she saw someone. “Mom?” she utters. In a quick pace, Astarte trot forward while holding the skirt above her knee.

The distance between her and the person standing gets closer.

It comes further to her sight. As she reaches the person, the figure of unfamiliarity appears. It’s a man, exactly quite mature than her.

In the wide meadow, Astarte lures to the appearance of the man standing right before her. Atop the semi hill, he stands. He’s wearing bizarre clothes and a bag on its shoulder; the man looks at her as well with wonder on its eyes.

“Who are you?”

On her voice with wonder, Astarte asked the man. But on her question, the man didn’t response at all.

He’s just there, standing while looking at her.

“You’re a human, right? May I ask your name?” Astarte asked again. But again, the man remained standing in front of her without speaking at all.

“I guess you’re deaf...” she uttered exasperatedly. This is an unfamiliar place. She has never been here before. Now, how should she go back home?

“I want to go home. Mom and Abigor might be looking at me now.”

Astarte then starts to walk past away to the man. However, in a sudden, the man grabbed her arm before she could completely walk out.

“Huh? You need something?” Astarte turns head sideways to look at the man. Her eyes captures the image of him, and suddenly got mesmerize.

It becomes strange; the moment their eyes meet, an ambiguous feeling faintly felt into her chest.

His eyes are round shape and hazelnut in color; his hair dyed in black, like a moonless night, glimmering on the beam of morning sunlight; a bit scruffy in style, but enough to make him good looking. His face is a little roundish and a fair complex of skin.

His body is not that muscular; enough to say that he is healthy and vigor.

Astarte suddenly shunned from what he did. Like a gem shining under the sun, his eyes glimmer, all while looking directly at her.

“He’s kind of different from the noble men I’ve been encountered before. A kind of... attractive and something I don’t fully understand at all.”

Her inner thought draws within. She got captured completely by the charm of this man. Without her knowing, her face becomes hot.

She can’t fully explain why, but this is something new happen to her now.

Astarte got the feeling of nervous and deep anxiety, yet her eyes can’t avert off from the eyes of the man. He’s glimmering throughout the morning sun.

His appearance makes her heart beats fast; her voice quiver while feeling the grip of him holding to her.

Anxiousness engulfed to her. Yet, she never hates these feelings. Something’s arising inside her. That doesn’t clear yet, she knows it.

“I want to know who you are... but there’s no way I can learn from it, right? I mean, we have never met before. How should I explain these feelings?”

Her heart keeps pounding like a drum.

Astarte couldn’t explain fully the meaning why it has been happened right now. All she knows is that, these feelings are quite new to her.

She wanted to learn this soon. “We will see each other again, my future queen...”

Out of a sudden, the man loosened his grip from Astarte’s arm. He goes to her hand and suddenly kneeled down on the ground. Leaning his face towards her, he kissed her fingers.

“Very soon, we will meet... because you are mine and I’m yours to be, my queen...”

His voice is like a cold stream nurturing throughout her body. It’s cool and refreshing, and his way of holding her seems like a lover.

Kissing her hand like he’s proposing, Astarte couldn’t hide the embarrassment from this happening.

But her feelings say otherwise. She wants to learn about this person. The true meaning of this person who appears right in front of her; the person who made her feels agitated and anxious at the same time.

“Saying that I’m your future queen, then that means—-“

Before her thoughts completed, the man suddenly vanished, leaving without trace.

In the dark void her surroundings succumb over. And from the other end, a little light appears.

She follows it, trotting on the dark and wide road.

® ® ® ®

>> Chirps of birds sing like a beautiful melody. In the open window where the morning sunbeam entrance and occupies the dim part of the room, a young girl sleeps soundly.

Her blonde, long hair scattered on the soft, feathered-filled pillows as it glimmers in the morning sunrays. At the brim of light encompassing over, her eyes slowly open.

“Good morning, milady...” Across the window is a young woman standing. Spreading her arms wide, holding the velvet curtain beside each, she turns.

“Abigor... Good morning...”

On the bed is the girl named Astarte lying down. She sits after while still feel grog from the entire night of sleeping.

Wiping her eyes as she yawns, Astarte looks at the maid. “How was your sleep, milady?”

“It’s good... though I had this strange dream.”

Replying with grogginess, Astarte stretched her arms out.

Abigor, who got fascinated from what the princess told, suddenly rushed by her side after.

“What’s that dream you had, milady? It’s uncommon for you to tell something like that...”

Abigor chatted with anticipation as she sits on the edge of the bed. Astarte then looks at Abigor and smiles.

“I don’t know exactly what kind of dream it is...”

As she replied, a faint feeling she has been on that dream suddenly rushed through her system. It is too vague to understand, but she knows it perfectly.

“.... But I met a man. He’s kind of odd, and seems not from a noble status...”

Astarte continues while trailing her words out.

Abigor nods to agree, showing that she’s eager to listen. “Did that man tell you something?”

“Huh?” at the question the maid give, Astarte shunned. She recalled the words, still clear as crystal water streams. “.... Yeah, kind of... but....”

Astarte didn’t say anything further than that. “But...? What? Tell me the details...”

“I already forgot it. Sorry...”

She gives a wry smile to the maid, who shows sulk expression after hearing the rest of the thoughts.

“You’re a buzz kill, milady. And here I was looking forward for you to see someone to be your next king.”

“Ahahaha! I’m not ready yet to find a king. There are things I want to enjoy first...”

Though she said it, but Astarte felt the longing sensation to meet that man.

“Very soon, we will meet... because you are mine and I’m yours to be, my queen...”

The vivid words taunt her mind.

His hand, the way how he holds her makes her heart quiver. Astarte felt that like it was real.

The warmth he gives leaves to her hand. She gripped it tightly together, without knowing that the faint scarlet color appears like a ring around her pinky finger.

“That man... who is he? Does he appear to me as somebody? When will I meet him? I don’t know if we will meet again...”

Those words whispers like a prayer inside her heart.

“Milady, let’s prepare for the day. The Queen is waiting for you...”

Abigor stands up and calls for the princess. Heeding her call, Astarte nods and leaves the bed quickly. She starts preparing as the maid helps.

All while the simple life the princess has... she wasn’t aware that it will soon change. The ascension of her to be the next Queen of the Kingdom will happen soon enough, and the meeting of the person she faintly longing to see.

Everything starts to align now. The gears of fate are on the move to make way on the present and seeks the future ahead the horizons.